Wakilii

Shariff and Another v Gaga (Civil Appeal No. 5 of 1952)

East African Court of Appeal · [1952] EACA 314 · 1952 Appeal Dismissed AI-generated summary ↓ Download Pin to watchlist Add to matter
Jurisdiction
Uganda
Case Type
Appeal from decision of Central Rent Control Board, Nairobi
Decision
Appeal dismissed

Observed later treatment

No later-treatment classification is recorded for this judgment.

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Holding

The Rent Control Board has no power to review its own decision after a full hearing on the merits. Once a tribunal has given a decision it becomes functus officio and in the absence of express legislative provision has no power to review and set aside its decision. No such provision exists in the Increase of Rent, etc., Ordinance. Further, no appeal lies against an order of the Board setting aside its previous decision as such an order is not a determination within the meaning of section 7 of the Ordinance.

Outcome

Appeal dismissed

Facts

In December 1951, the Rent Control Board heard an application by two landlords jointly for possession of premises from a tenant on grounds of non-payment of rent. Both parties were represented by advocates. After hearing evidence and argument, the Board made an order for possession and payment of arrears of rent. In January 1952, the tenant applied to the Board to review and set aside its decision on the ground that one of the landlords had died before the decision was given. The Board heard arguments from advocates for both parties and on 24 January 1952 made an order setting aside its previous decision. The landlords appealed.

Issues

  1. Whether the Rent Control Board has power to review its own decision after a full hearing on the merits.
  2. Whether an appeal lies against an order of the Board setting aside its previous decision.

Orders

  • Appeal dismissed with costs.

Rules and key headnotes

Administrative Law — Rent Control Board — Power to Review Own Decision — Functus Officio Doctrine
A Rent Control Board has no power to review its own decision after a full hearing on the merits. Once a tribunal has given a decision in a case it becomes functus officio and in the absence of express legislative provision it has no power to review its decision and set it aside.
Administrative Law — Rent Control Board — Review of Ex Parte Decisions Distinguished
The power of a Rent Control Board to set aside ex parte decisions under section 9 of the Increase of Rent, etc., Ordinance does not extend to reviewing decisions arrived at after a full hearing on the merits.
Civil Procedure — Appeals — Appealable Orders — Determination
An order of the Rent Control Board setting aside its previous decision is not a determination within the meaning of section 7 of the Increase of Rent, etc., Ordinance and accordingly no appeal lies against such an order.

Legislation cited (2)

  • Increase of Rent, etc., Ordinance s.7
  • Increase of Rent, etc., Ordinance s.9

Cases cited (4)

  • Arjan Singh Virdee v Mechani and Others (Civil Appeal No. 378 of 1951)
  • Gujerat Commercial Corporation v. Laxman Doss and Others. 25 (1) K.L.R. 101
  • Sheikh Noordin Mohamed v. Sheikh Bros., Ltd., 18 E.A.C.A. 42
  • Gujerat Commercial Corporation v Laxman Dass and Another (Civil Appeal No. 539 of 1951)

Full judgment

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The original judgment as reported. Read the original PDF before relying on any passage.

Shariff and Another v Gaga (Civil Appeal No. 5 of 1952) [1952] EACA 314 (1 January 1952)
Source: this page presents Wakilii’s issue analysis and metadata for a publicly reported Ugandan judgment. Any AI-generated summary is marked as such. Judgment text is sourced from the Uganda Legal Information Institute (ulii.org). Wakilii is not affiliated with ULII.